Man with AIDS sentenced to 12 years in prison after spitting in officer's face

A man with AIDS spat on a police officer back in September, according to an arrest affidavit. The man was sentenced to 12 years in prison, according to Bell County court officials.

Author:
Patrick Mueller

Published:
6:14 PM CST January 7, 2019

Updated:
6:20 PM CST January 7, 2019

KILLEEN, Texas — A man with AIDS was sentenced to 12 years in prison Friday on a harassment of a public servant charge, after he was arrested in September, 2018, for spitting on a Killeen police officer, according to an arrest affidavit from the Bell County Sheriff's Office.

On Sept. 7, 2018, two Killeen police officers were sent to the 2500 block of East Central Texas Expressway to respond to a disturbance at the Spec's Liquor Store at that location, the affidavit said.

The officers confronted the suspect, Ronnie Deel, walking towards Academy Sports, and asked him if he caused the scene at Spec's, the affidavit said.

At first, Deel gave officers a fake name and denied he was at Spec's harassing people at the front of the store, the affidavit said. Deel later admitted he was in front of the liquor store trying to see if someone would buy something for him.

When asked his age, Deel gave different ages, then the officers arrested him for failure to ID, the affidavit said.

At first, Deel cooperated with the officers, who led him to the patrol car and handcuffed him. Once police started to put him in the back of the car, he got aggressive, the affidavit said.

As the officers drove out of the parking lot, Deel spat on the officer sitting in the passenger seat, the affidavit said.

Deel's criminal history showed several violent felonies, and he is listed in the system as "highly contagious" because he has AIDS and HIV.